


5:28:4:09

by IAmANonnieMouse



Series: AELDWS 2019 [6]
Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Implied/Referenced Character Death, Implied/Referenced Violence, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-14
Updated: 2019-08-14
Packaged: 2020-08-23 14:09:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20244121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IAmANonnieMouse/pseuds/IAmANonnieMouse
Summary: I'm coming. Wait for me.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AELDWS Week 6  
Prompt: Bitter Dregs  
Genre: None  
Word Count: 300 to 400 words

“It’s going to happen,” Arthur says. “It’s a matter of when, not if.”

“Alright.” Eames sips his tea. “What do we do?”

Arthur flips open his Moleskine. “I’ve been thinking.”

*

When it happens, they’re on separate jobs, stranded on opposite ends of the globe. Ariadne texts Eames, frantic with the news.

A vigilante hacker group has published the names and aliases of everyone in dreamshare.

“We have a plan,” Arthur says when Eames calls. “I’m coming. Wait for me.”

It’s not a question. Eames smiles. “Always.”

They catch Arthur one week later, just ten miles from their safe house where Eames is sitting. Waiting.

*

Five months. Twenty-eight days. Four hours. Nine minutes.

That’s how long he lasts, after it happens. 

*

Eames ditches the safe house the minute he finds out about Arthur, and he doesn’t stop moving.

The first task is to find the people who caught Arthur. Once that’s accomplished, he moves onto the hacker group, focuses on dismantling them piece by piece. 

He pauses for a moment at a safehouse in Siberia and makes himself a cup of tea. Mourns. 

He eyes the tea leaves clumped at the bottom of his cup. There’s something about life in there—the very thing that creates sweet flavor waits in a bitter pile at the end. The very technology that brought him dreamshare killed Arthur. Now, Eames is just making others taste the bitterness, too.

He’s got one last place on his list, and it’s going to be great. Blaze of glory, and all that jazz.

He closes his eyes and lets his head fall back. _Wait for me,_ he thinks. _Just a little longer._

*

The last place is more secure than the rest, but that isn’t saying much. Eames slips through the building, mindful of the countdown in his head. When it reaches one, he flips the switch to detonate the C4 he planted around the entire building and retreats into the nearest room.

The sounds of chaos filter in through the door, accompanied by detonations. Eames ignores them all.

One bullet left. That’s all he needs.

_I'm coming, Arthur,_ he thinks as he calmly raises his gun. _Wait for me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the drabble I submitted to AELDWS. If you're interested in an unsolicited insight into my writing process, check out the next two chapters to see earlier versions of this drabble. Otherwise, you can stop here! :D


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the very first version of this drabble that I tried. Sadly, I didn't save the original-original version that had wonderful notes like [INSERT METAPHOR HERE] and [THERE'S A FIGHT, OR SOMETHING].

Five months. Twenty-eight days. Four hours. Nine minutes.

That's how long he lasts, after it happens

Arthur had predicted this, had made them plans and contingencies with contingencies, but they were still caught off-guard. When a hacker released the names and aliases of every dreamshare member—and listed their clients and marks from every job—Arthur and Eames were on separate jobs, trapped on opposite ends of the globe.

They were veterans of the community, so their lists were some of the longest. The prices on their heads were some of the highest.

_We'll handle this. We have a plan,_ Arthur said that night on the phone. _I'm coming. Wait for me._

They caught Arthur five miles away from Eames' safe house, while Eames sat there. Waiting.

That night, Eames got himself completely shit-faced on cheap, shitty wine in honor of Arthur’s memory, forcing down the bitter dregs at the bottom. 

There was something there that related to life, he mused, in the way the concentrated, bitter things at the bottom created all the sweetness that came before. The very technology that had given him a lifetime with Arthur was now bringing their lives to an end.

The next morning, he’d woken with a vengeful hangover and the knowledge that Arthur wasn’t coming. He forced himself to sober up, if only so he’d be ready when they eventually came for him.

He’s stumbled through every day since, obsessively tracking news of everyone else.

When his system chimes with a security breach, Eames is hit with a sickening wave of relief. 

He counts his bullets and takes a breath.

It’s all going to be over soon. So very soon.

He takes out the first man through the door with a single bullet, and continues from there. There’s a countdown in his head, with every shot he takes. When he reaches one, he retreats deeper into the house to buy himself just enough time.

One bullet left. That’s all he needs.

_I'm coming, Arthur,_ he thinks as he calmly raises his gun. _Wait for me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't love the pace of this, so I immediately tried writing another version (next chapter).


	3. Chapter 3

“It’s going to happen,” Arthur says, eyes dark. “It’s a matter of when, not if.”

“Alright.” Eames sips his tea. “So what do we do?”

Arthur slides his Moleskine across the table. “I’ve been thinking.”

*

When it happens, they’re on separate jobs, stranded on opposite ends of the globe. Ariadne texts Eames, frantic with the news.

A vigilante hacker group has published the names and aliases of every member in dreamshare—along with a list of their clients and marks.

It’s exactly what Arthur predicted.

“We have a plan,” Arthur says when Eames calls him. “I’m coming. Wait for me.”

It’s not a question, but Eames says, “Always.”

They catch Arthur one week later, just ten miles from their safe house where Eames is sitting. Waiting.

*

Five months. Twenty-eight days. Four hours. Nine minutes.

That’s how long he lasts, after it happens. 

*

He fled the safe house the minute he found out about Arthur, and he hasn’t stopped running since. He’s holed up in a tiny shack in Siberia right now, nursing a warm cup of tea. Mourning.

At first, he tried to keep tabs on everyone. He stopped when the list of Gones was longer than the list of Nots. 

Eames eyes the tea leaves clumped at the bottom of his mug. There’s something about life in there, in the fact that the very thing that creates sweetness waits in a bitter pile at the end. The very technology that brought him dreamshare—brought him Arthur—is the thing that’s facilitating their demise.

He’s done running. He’s already planning his last stand. Blaze of glory, and all that jazz.

He closes his eyes. _Wait for me,_ he thinks. _Just a little longer._

*

They don’t try to hide their approach, but Eames doesn’t care.

He carefully counts his bullets, and waits.

The first figure through the door gets a bullet to the brain. Eames shoots down five more before they catch on.

He retreats further into the house, killing the ones who get too close. One bullet, one person. 

In his head, there’s a countdown that moves with every shot he takes. When he gets down to one, he locks himself in his room and hits the trigger to detonate the C4 he wired.

One bullet left. That’s all he needs.

_I'm coming, Arthur,_ he thinks as he calmly raises his gun. _Wait for me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After I finished this version, I sent both over to my amazing beta, Flosculatory, and said, I can't decide which I like better??  
And we ended up discussing the things we dislike in both versions.   
I have Eames run away, and then randomly he decides to stop running away and just...let them catch him. (Also I had like 19 verb tenses floating around, lol). So I wrote option 3, aka Murder!Eames, and we decided to go with that one!
> 
> This dialogue also happened at one point:  
Mousie: should i just pick one of them, clean it up (aka bash it with a hammer) or should I play w both and see how they come out?  
Flos: You know what you have to do  
Flos: You have to write terrible crack  
Flos: And get eliminated  
Flos: It's your only choice  
Mousie: true babe  
Mousie: crack all the way  
Mousie: arthur is a barista at starbucks, makes eames a shitty drink  
Mousie: the end
> 
> To any of you who've actually read all this, hope you've enjoyed this random behind-the-scenes look at my writing process lol!


End file.
